Kazuya Kujō
Kazuya Kujō (久城一弥 Kujō Kazuya) is a 13-15 year-old (15 in the manga and the light novels) Japanese-born boy who leaves his home to study in Sauville. Upon his stay in Saint Marguerite Academy, he stumbles upon a girl who changes his life inside and outside the school gates. Background As the youngest son of an Imperial soldier, Kazuya has spent most of his life struggling with living in his highly successful siblings' shadows. Jealous of all the attention his brothers got, he worked hard to compete, but everything changed when he understood that adults, who think that the youngest child is always spoiled and useless, will never acknowledge his efforts. With a permanent scar in his heart, he left the military academy in Japan and before anyone from his family could stop him, went to study abroad to Saint Marguerite Academy. Unfortunately, his appearance, combined with the student body's belief that "the traveler who comes in Spring brings death with him" has resulted in Kazuya being called the "Dark Reaper" and having no friends. By some twist of fate he becomes a messenger and companion to the most eccentric pupil in the school, Victorique de Blois. At first he didn't like Victorique because of her arrogant attitude, but after some time he started to care for her and be protective of her. He is described, by Victorique, as a good and sincere person whose soul is pure and beautiful enough to admit pride. Despite everything that happened in Japan he is proud to be a soldier's son. Appearance Kujo is a young boy with black hair and burgundy eyes. Although usually seen wearing the uniform of Saint Marguerite Academy, he also wears the conservative clothing that boys of his age usually wear. His outfit consists of: long-sleeved shirts worn over light-colored undershirts; neckties; a coat; and either breeches or slacks. Most of the time, he wears a narrow-brimmed hat. Personality Kazuya possesses a kind and sincere attitude, usually soft-spoken and respectful to others. He takes the honor of being an Imperial soldier's son to heart, and follows its code of honor most of the time. However, he shows a more blunt side when he is annoyed, causing him to hurt others by his words carelessly. Kujo also possesses an imperfect memory, remembering many details that are helpful in solving a case, yet unable to always remember information outside solving crimes. Plot 'The Reaper Arrives at Spring' After a long journey from Japan to Sauville, Kazuya arrives at Saint Marguerite Academy on Spring of 1924. He instantly makes a mark at the students, who suspect him of bringing bad luck to the school due to his physical appearance. However, his teacher Cecile Lafitte becomes interested to know more about him, and in her attempt to get close to her newest student, she asks Kazuya to bring handouts to someone at the school library. Upon his ascent to the topmost floor the the library, he stumbles upon a doll-like girl, which he initially presumes to be a talking doll. The next day, he later realizes that the girl, named Victorique, is in fact his classmate. Kazuya later witnesses Victorique's prowess in solving crimes when she connects the clues found from the murder of the fortune-teller Roxane. However, Victorique realizes that the case is far from solved upon discovering an invitation letter addressed to Roxane inside the fortune-teller's yacht. By Victorique's request, they trace the letter to a dinner held inside a ship named the Queen Berry. 'The Queen's Berry's Voyage' Kazuya finds himself, Victorique, and several other guests in a cabin inside the Queen Berry after a dinner that was later discovered as drugged. He soon witnesses the deaths of each of the guests, and he decides stands up to protect Victorique from whatever odds they faced inside the ship. He, alongside Julie Guile and Victorique, discover that Ned Baxter has once participated in the "Running of the Wolves", and is in fact the one who is tasked with murdering the other children inside the ship ten years ago. Ned repeatedly targets Victorique after having failed to kill her (due to Kazuya's initial intervention) and after Kazuya takes on Ned on a few occasions, although it took a group effort from him and Julie to stop Ned's rampage. After having treated for his wounds, Kazuya escapes with Victorique and Julie from the sinking luxury liner. 'Guilty Until Proven Innocent' In an unexpected twist of events, Kazuya is involved in the death of a government official, and he is accused by Inspector Grevil de Blois of being the perpetrator. He seeks the help of Victorique to clear his name of any accusations against him, and he discovers that he is the only one who was able to point the police to the true culprit, with the help of his seemingly random daydreaming. However, mixed feelings are felt when a transfer student named Avril Bradley arrives in his class... a girl with blond hair and a wounded hand, the description that fits the murderer of the government official. 'Unmasking Avril Bradley' To avoid stirring unnecessary scandal due to his own suspicions, Kazuya takes his thoughts about Avril Bradley to himself, only sharing it to Victorique, which does not heed to his worries immediately. Soon, he and Avril become witnesses to the reopening of a case that trails eight years in the past. At the resolution of the case, things are still left hanging, including any relevance of the mysterious book that Avril retrieved in the crypt at the discovery of the corpse of Saint Marguerite's graduate Maxim. Victorique reveals that a postcard addressed to Avril Bradley herself is slipped between the book's pages, and she has been keeping the postcard in her custody. Kazuya soon stumbles upon an abandoned warehouse and is attacked by someone while trying to explore it; this event caused his suspicions against Avril to intensify, but only until Grevil relays information about a thief named Kuiaran and its true identity (who is none other than Maxim himself) and rumors of a "Kuiaran the Second" appearing in their town. After a successful second attempt at entering the abandoned warehouse with Cecile, he tells what he saw to Victorique, who urges him to rescue the person who is inside the warehouse: the real Avril Bradley. While he and Grevil undergo a rescue mission to retrieve Avril from the warehouse, the fake Avril (Kuiaran the Second) is close to reaching Victorique's whereabouts. Kazuya's realization of Avril's true identity causes him to return to the library and stop Kuiaran the Second. After an intense confrontation that almost cost Kazuya his life, Kazuya is rescued by none other than Victorique herself. 'The Journey to Victorique's Roots' Ever since Kazuya has rescued Avril Bradley, the exchange student from England has started to join him on several walks around the academy and on the town itself. In one of these occasions, they stumble upon a magician with red hair and a nun that sells various wares. In both encounters, he receives something unusual: a foreign-looking hat, and a missing plate. Kazuya tells Victorique about what he discovered and after a speedy conclusion to the Dresden Plate soon learns about her mother, Cordelia Gallo. Yet another encounter by Kazuya drags both him and Victorique past the gates of Saint Marguerite and into Horovitz, where they enter the Village of the Gray Wolves in order to clear the name of Victorique's mother, whom she knows is wrongly accused of a crime that happened twenty years ago. Alongside three students and the nun linked with the disappearance of the Dresden Plate, Kazuya and Victorique stay to witness the Summer Solstice Festival in the village; however, Kazuya and Victorique focus more on looking for clues that Cordelia has left in the village. The day soon continues, and the deaths of two of the students have alarmed the populace, although it is not enough to stop the festivities; Victorique decides to solve the murders as well, and the clues to the murder of the two students point to Derek Banks, who is the third student. The clues involving the murder of the village's past elder Theodore are properly laid out, and Victorique declares that Harminia is the real culprit, and this has caused Harminia to unleash her fury into the village, ultimately ending with the destruction of the only link between the village and the outside world. Kazuya barely survived the ordeal, shielding Victorique from Harminia's assault and almost falling from the ruined drawbridge when it caught fire. 'Disappearances in Saubrème' After receiving a shopping list from his sister Ruri, Kazuya travels to Saubrème, the capital of Sauville. Unfortunately, since Victorique is bedridden, he has to make the trip alone. Kazuya soon discovers unusual events in Jeantan Department Store, finding a frail girl desperate for help and stumbling upon a "blue rose" among others. However, without Victorique by her side, he turns to Sauville's police, and although Kazuya's testimony was not taken seriously at first, Grevil decides to help, as he himself is handling in a case involving several women and children who went missing over the past year. Victorique, in spite of her illness, offers her time to help solve the case, and with Victorique's insight and an impoverished boy named Luigi's witness account, Grevil, Kazuya and the Sauville Police launched a raid on Jeantan Department Store, concluding with the arrest of the store's owner Garnier and the rescue of many women and children who were auctioned in the black market. With the case finally solved, Kazuya makes new friends with Luigi and Anastasia, and before returning to Saint Marguerite Academy, he bought a pipe holder in the form of a glass slipper to Victorique. 'Grevil's Love Revisited' On the final moments of Spring, Saint Marguerite Academy is visited by Jacqueline de Signore, the woman who helped Luigi return to studying, and Kazuya ends up as her guide in the school as he is a familiar face. In their walk across the school grounds, Kazuya would discover some details about Grevil from Jacqueline, including a time when he did not sport the infamous drill-like hairstyle he is wearing in the present. Kazuya later learns from Victorique that Jacqueline is in fact Grevil's childhood friend, and they were involved in a case that brought Grevil to Victorique's doorstep. 'Memories of Summer' Summer vacation finally begins in Saint Marguerite Academy and Kazuya realizes that he is too far away from Japan to make a visit. He is then invited by Avril Bradley to join her in the Mediterranean. Kazuya agreed to join at first, but he reconsiders the plan and instead decides to join Victorique inside the school grounds, knowing that she will be left behind as she is prohibited to leave the school. At that time, Victorique was already contented with staying for the vacation with no one to accompany her like in past summer vacations, but it changed when Kazuya appears with a parasol and some candies for her. Throughout the summer vacation, Victorique and Kazuya are always seen together. Trivia *Was mistaken as a "Chinese Man" due to cultural mishaps during his time. *Has two older brothers named Yasuhiro and Yutaka and an older sister named Ruri. *Kujo is 172 cm (5 foot 8) and 174 cm (5 foot 9) with shoes. *Kazuya's birthday is on September 2, 1910. However, in the manga, it is stated that he was born on the year 1909 and was a 15 year old. Category:Characters